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Friday, September 9, 2011

22 years ago today, Sept. 9, 1989, I married my best friend. As I was sitting at my desk at work today, I was looking at the wedding ring he gave me and thinking about all the years we've been together. When we got married, we didn't have much money. Who does? So my ring, by today's standards, is very simple and understated. But it is a one of a kind, quite by accident. He bought the engagment ring at one jeweler's and we found the band at another. And he didn't have to go into debt to purchase them. The stones are sapphires, my favorite stone and incidentally, it is the birthstone for the month of September. That wasn't planned...it was just a coincidence. I had originally picked out a single pearl ring to be the engagment ring for a couple of reason. 1. I am not a big diamond fan and 2. I wanted something entirely different than the traditional solitaire. But after months of thinking about that pearl ring, I decided that since I was so clumsy I would most probably knock that pearl off its setting the first time I wore it. So we started looking around again. And we found the engagment ring. He proposed in April of 1989 and slipped that ring on my finger. I remember the night in early September when I went to pick up the wedding bands before the wedding. His band does not match mine. Again, we wanted to be different. Even though I knew it was considered bad luck to put on the wedding ring before the wedding, I wanted to see the two together on my finger. So I put it on and spent the drive home admiring how well they went together, even though they were from different stores. As corny as this sounds, that's the way I felt about us...how well we went together. I've had the ring for 22 years now. I've never owned ANY jewelry that long! I got it caught on a fence the week after our honeymoon and twisted the band and lost a sapphire. I cried and cried. It was repaired and you can't tell the difference. I don't wear it around the house to avoid repeating that episode. I couldn't wear it when I was pregnant due to the swelling in my fingers. Then I gained so much weight that I couldn't even get it on my finger. (One of the things I'm most happy about since I joined Weight Watchers, is being able to wear my wedding ring again.) When we hit our 20th anniversary, I thought about asking him for a bigger, more modern ring. But then I looked at mine....and I can't do it. It reminds me of who we were when we were just starting out. It reminds me of where we came from. It reminds me how perfect we are together and a new, modern ring just wouldn't do all of that. In my heart, it would not be MY wedding ring. It would be a replacement. And I don't want a replacement. It's too big now, and will probably wind up really to big for me when I hit my WW goal. The band is a little twisted but that doesn't matter. I'll have it sized down when the time comes. And I'll wear this ring that my best friend gave me for the rest of eternity.

In 1973, (I was 9 years old) there was a movie on t.v. called Don't Be Afraid of the Dark. It starred Kim Darby as "Sally". She and her husband inherit and move into an old house and in the restoration process, she discovers a sealed fireplace. Her curiousity gets the better of her, and despite warnings from the handyman, she opens the fireplace. Soon, she hears whispering and begins seeing small, demonlike creatures around the house. Unfortunely for her, no one else sees them. Until it's too late! The creatures are intent upon possessing her and taking her to the fireplace with them for eternity. Their only weakness is light of any kind. Eventually, they drag Sally into the fireplace with them. The scene where Sally is being dragged by her ankles by the creatures, using the flash from a camera to try to hurt them, was engraved in my memory. This movie is the one responsible for making me afraid of the dark and it was one of those rare movies that I have never forgotten. About a year ago, I found out through IMBD that Don't Be Afraid of the Dark was being remade, starring Katy Holmes. I can't tell you how excited I was to hear that news! So I went online and found a copy of the original movie from 1973 and bought it. The one that scared me silly and made me sleep with a nightlight to this very day. I popped it in the DVD player with goosebumps on my arms and sat down with my kids to watch it. Imagine my disappointment in the creatures!! They were laughable! (and believe me...my kids were cracking up!!) The acting wasn't much better from the human actors, either. Sally was a whimp and whined and cried her way throughout the entire story. Nevertheless....I eagerly awaited the new version. I was not disappointed! In the new version, Sally is a young girl, about 8 or 9, who is sent to live with her dad and his fiance' in this ginormous old house. She finds a basement that has been hidden and sealed shut for years and in the basement is the fireplace. The story stays pretty much with the original, except the creatures in this one are akin to goblins or trolls. More like evil tooth fairies, because they eat children's teeth. Katy Holmes plays the step-mom-to-be who at first, is reluctant about becoming a mom. However, as the story progresses, she and Sally form a bond. Katy's character, Kim, is the heroine I hoped she would be. She didn't lay down and give up, as Kim Darby's character did, but she stood up and fought for Sally. As for the new creatures...all I can say is this: if I weren't already afraid of the dark, I sure would be now.

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About Me

I am a working mother of two teens, spoiled dachshund and an effervescent Golden Retriever. AND I have a husband who is addicted to fishing. I love to cook, scrapbook, read, watch movies and hang out with my family and my friends. This blog is a place for me to store the extra stuff in my head!